At a large-scale hospital and an examination center, which analyze a large amount of specimen such as blood, automation of transferring and pre-processing the specimen is advancing for the purpose of improving examination efficiency and of decreasing contact between an operator and the specimen such as the blood. The specimen such as the blood is processed being housed in a container such as a test tube and a cup on which a label is attached. A barcode and the like are printed on the label.
As an outside diameter of the test tube, approximately φ16 or φ13 is most often used; however, there is variation of about several millimeters among manufacturers. Furthermore, some have a tapered external shape, whereby an outside diameter of a bottom of the container is shaped to be smaller than an outside diameter of an opening portion of the container.
These test tubes, while being placed on a test tube holder, are transferred by a transferring apparatus such as a transfer line to a pre-processing apparatus and an analysis apparatus. Patent Literature 1 discloses a general system using the test tube holder. In this system, the test tube is inserted into the test tube holder at a feeding part of the specimen, and processing such as extraction and insertion of the test tube is repeated at a storing part of the specimen and during intermediate processes. Furthermore, it is necessary for the test tube holder to hold the test tubes having different external shapes substantially perpendicular. Therefore, as in Patent Literatures 2, 3, and the like, in a holding structure, an elastic spring of metal or the like is installed facing upward in many cases.